Sample name: Shotgun (Carnegie Museum)

Sample aka: Keefer Hill

Reference: L. Krishtalka, C. C. Black, and D. W. Riedel. 1975. Paleontology and geology of the Badwater Creek area, central Wyoming. Annals of Carnegie Museum 45(9):179-212 [ER 4107]

Lithology: siliciclastic (mixed)

Taphonomic context: lake deposit

Habitat comments: "a narrow band of deeply dissected siltstones, claystones, and sandstones"
the sediments accumulated "along the lake margin"
the shark teeth are taken by Gunnell (1989) to indicate "sources of salt water... rather close" to the locality and "may have meant that Waltman Lake was saline"
preservation is poor, with "very few specimens that preserve mandibles or maxillae" (Gunnell 1989)

Life forms: primates,ungulates,other small mammals

Sampling methods: screenwash

Sample size: 276 specimens

Museum: Carnegie Museum

Sampling comments: "In 1963 fossil vertebrates of Paleocene age were first discovered" at this locality and "two to three tons of matrix from this locality have now been washed" (= about 2.5 US tons or 2268 kg)
there are also "shark teeth, osteichthyan vertebrae, crocodilian fragments, various gastropods, and pelycopods and reworked ammonite fragments"
this inventory strictly pertains to the CM specimens discussed by the authors
there is also a significant MCZ collection that presumably yields most or all of the many species not discussed by Krishtalka et al.
Keefer (1961) and Keefer and Troyer (1964) also discussed taxa from this site
Gunnell (1989) appears to be unaware of Krishtalka et al. (1975) and does not discuss the Carnegie Museum collection that forms the basis of this species inventory
Sloan (1987) lists Neoplagiaulax nelsoni, Ectypodus aphronorus, Parectypodus pattersoni, P. sinclairi, and Anconodon lewisi all on the basis of MCZ specimens: I assume that the CM Ectypodus is aphronorus, but none of the other genera are listed by Krishtalka et al.
Protictis microlestes was described by MacIntyre (1966) and Krause and Gingerich (1983) but Krishtalka et al. and Gunnell (1989) list no carnivores
MacIntyre also described cf. Protictis (Simpsonictis)
Aphronorus orieli is present in the MCZ collection only according to Krishtalka et al.
the following species of Gunnell (1989) do not match the list of Krishtalka et al.:
"cf. Anacodon gidleyi", which appears to be a lapsus for Anconodon gidleyi of Keefer (1961)
Mimetodon cf. silberlingi
Catopsalis calgariensis of Middleton 1982, including C. cf. fissidens of Gunnell (1989) and Keefer (1961)
Pentacodon sp.
Nannodectes intermedius
Palenochtha cf. minor
Palaechthon woodi
Palaechthon cf. alticuspis
Plesiolestes cf. problematicus
Torrejonia sirokyi
Paromomys cf. depressidens
Ignacius fremontensis
Ignacius cf. frugivorus
Elphidotarsius shotgunensis
Picrodus cf. silberlingi (described by McGrew and Patterson 1962)
Peryptychus cf. carinidens
Anisonchus cf. sectorius
Promioclaenus sp.
Ectocion sp. (not mentioned by Thewissen 1990)
Claenodon cf. ferox
Colpoclaenus keeferi (the type, see Patterson and McGrew 1962)
Elpidophorus cf. minor
Pantolambda cf. cavirictum

Sample number: 4535

Contributor: John Alroy

Enterer: John Alroy

Modifier no: John Alroy

Created: 2024-12-02 06:04:21

Modified: 2024-12-02 06:04:36